Medical Alert: Chronic Discrimination Syndrome On The Rise

Each year, millions die from preventable complications of Chronic Discrimination Syndrome (CDS). It afflicts 100% of the black population. It’s not well-researched and treatment options remain limited. Prognosis depends on the severity of the syndrome. Reportedly, it is estimated that ninety-five percent of CDS patients in the advanced stage die from complications or commit suicide. It’s a debilitating disease causing physical and mental anguish that is not recognized by the medical community.

There are no official stats available as whites are not afflicted, but that is changing. White people do not like to be excluded from anything. Traditional media reported cases of this syndrome in white supremacists who feel persecuted when non-whites get justice and go on a rampage of violence and bigotry against people of color. This rampage or war against people of color has resulted in a dramatic rise in CDS.

What is CDS?

CDS is a syndrome that results from exposure to chronic bigotry. Black people from birth until death are at risk and at some point, all black people develop some degree of CDS. Chronic discrimination causes chronic or toxic stress. Stress is a common denominator in all medical and psychological illnesses.

Everyone experiences stress. The stress response also referred to as the fight or flight response is an acute response that is protective. The response helps humans overcome acutely stressful situations, either by fighting with courage or fleeing danger. Toxic stress occurs when a person subjected to chronic stress/discrimination gets little to no support from the environment, such as family, friends or society.

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms begin at birth when non-whites learn to accept their “place” in a white-dominated world. Being subjected to toxic stress throughout life, people of color cope in different ways, but all develop CDS linked to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Symptoms include self-doubt, self-hate, low self-esteem, lack of confidence, hypervigilance, anxiety, fatigue, and insomnia. Some black people adjust by embracing white culture fully and often develop coon like characteristics similar to Kanye West. Others become angry at the injustices leveled against them and fall prey to the criminal system.

To tolerate the stress of chronic discrimination many self-medicate with alcohol, cigarettes, drugs or religion.

In the advanced stages, people of color develop chronic medical diseases such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, chronic pulmonary disease, and cardiac problems. A significant number of black people withdraw from society and rarely leave their homes. Others hear God’s calling and join him in heaven or hell.

How is the diagnosis made?

There are no specific laboratory tests to confirm the diagnosis. It is a diagnosis based on history and physical exam.

All black people are at risk. Other people of color are at risk but to a lesser degree. The diagnosis requires identifying those at risk and the following three:

Traumatic exposure to discrimination that resulted in a medical error or missed diagnosis or incarceration or job discrimination.

The consistent failure of the judicial system to protect or provide justice to black patients subjected to discrimination in the workplace, the criminal system, housing, and healthcare.

Suppressed anger or rage expressed in unusual ways such as overly obedient, submissive or at times rebellious.

In the advanced stage, there is much resentment of white culture as chronic medical illnesses, associated medical errors and misdiagnosis bind black patients to a structurally racist health care system that is not held accountable. During this stage, black patients are forced to trust those who did the most harm to them. Warning, this often results in sudden death either from medical errors, medication side effects or existing in a hostile environment.

The resentment to white culture is similar to cancer. It aggressively spreads to involve everyone and everything. To avoid the stress of resentful feelings, many patients withdraw from society and spend their last days in total isolation.

They miss appointments, stop caring for themselves or stop engaging in social activities. At that point, the end is near.

Treatment options

Treatment options are limited since there is no cure. In the early stages, giving patients insight into the syndrome and its triggers can slow progression or occasionally avert advanced disease in exceptional individuals. Currently, only palliative therapy is available. Treating the underlying associated chronic medical diseases can be helpful but does not change the dire prognosis. Some patients find temporary relief in alcohol or narcotics while others suffer quietly, waiting for the inevitable end.

CDS is a societal induced medical illness that is not recognized. It’s unclear how many die from the complications of CDS. We do know a rise in discrimination, racism, and white supremacy result in a corresponding increase of CDS.

Most white people will double down on racism to accelerate the effects of CDS. That may explain why the medical community refuses to recognize it as a disorder. In the world of the Steve Kings CDS is a blessing to white supremacy. It guarantees a life of stress, early death or non-participation in society for most black people.

It applies to far too many people with disabilities – both visible and invisible – in America, too. Which sucks, because the last thing people with chronic conditions is to have more completely preventable ones piled on top of them. As a sad statistician, I’ve seen some good numbers that say that if at least one of the Republican health care bills had passed, 47,000 more Americans would die form their Chronic Discrimination Syndrome each year. And, given that 75% of those who are trans will attempt suicide at some point, and we now have the most discriminatory bill from the Republicans yet directed at them…we could probably put some hard numbers on deaths from that. Add in police violence, suicides….I feel like a statistician like me could probably cross-link dozens of public health and social justice datasets and come up with some rather frightening – but better research-backed than most of what government uses to pass laws lately – counts of exactly how many Americans die from Chronic Discrimination Syndrome each year…

Hi lavenderandlevity,
You’re right people with disabilities do experience CDS and so do trans. I see your point, and at some point would like a statistician like you to “cross-link dozens of public health and social justice datasets and come up with some rather frightening – but better research-backed than most of what government uses to pass laws lately – counts of exactly how many Americans die from Chronic Discrimination Syndrome each year…”

There is, however, a difference in whites who are trans or disabled as opposed to POC who are either.

Whites tend not to experience the same intense or toxic discrimination and when they do the judicial protects and provides them justice. Also, they can get legal service on a contingency, unlike black people who rarely get contingent legal services. There is a racial disparity in legal representation. CDS occurs in people exposed to toxic stress which is chronic stress without a support system. Whites have each other, and wealthy whites have disabled and trans children. That’s rarely the case for the majority of black people.

I was in a court where the judge and the prosecutor were physically disabled. Both took visible pleasure sending brown kids in orange jumpsuits back to prison in a state that is 95% white while the white kids were in suits and went home. I as an observer could see their physical disability had not helped them gain compassion or empathy and did not impede their appetite for cruelty or bigotry. They were similar to white supremacists with CDS.

CDS is different in black people and people of color than in white people. The course and complications are different.